Biographical Info

Born in Africa around 1779, Jenny Lamar survived both kidnapping and the Middle Passage during her early life. Of necessity, she learned English. She also became literate, though how or when she acquired these skills is not known. Purchased by Zachariah Lamar, she became a nursemaid to his children, John Basil, Mary Ann, and Andrew Jackson. Following the death of Zachariah’s wife Mary Ann Robinson Lamar in 1823, Jenny essentially became the governess for all three Lamar children. Her own children worked within the various family households or on the Cobb-Lamar family plantations. When Zachariah died in 1834, he stipulated that the family should require no further work from Jenny. Instead, he directed that Mary Ann should provide her with a house in Milledgeville and support for the balance of her life. In 1854, she requested that her granddaughter be sent from the plantation to live with her in Milledgeville. Mary Ann granted the request and routinely ignored protests from the local government that it was illegal for enslaved people to live away from their enslaver’s home. Jenny Lamar died in 1869.